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Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Twenty-seven bids for Belgrade Airport concession

Twenty-seven non-binding offers have been submitted for the 25-year concession of Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, the Serbian Ministry for Construction, Transport and Infrastructure has said as the deadline for the first phase of the process passed over the weekend. Among the 27 are companies from France, Germany, China, Japan, Greece, Turkey, Russia, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, Italy, Austria, Poland, Cyprus, Switzerland, India and South Korea. A total of four bids each came from China and France, while three were submitted from Russia and Turkey, and two from Greece. While the government said it will not be revealing the names of the bidders, all have since been leaked by the press (as listed below).

Company/Consortium

Country

Fraport

Germany

Manchester Airports Group

UK

Mitsubishi Corporation

Japan

Zurich International Airport

Switzerland

Strabag

Austria

Incheon International Airport Corporation

South Korea

Hubco Netherlands BV - Ferrovial Airports

Netherlands/Spain

China National Aero Tehnology &
HNA Airport Group Co. LTD Consortium

China

Shenzhen Airport Group Co.

China

China State Construction
Engineering Corporation Limited

China

Jiangsu Nantong Liujian Construction Group Co.

China

Vinci Airports

France

Meridiam

France

Eiffage

France

Egis Airport Operation

France

IC Altyapı

Turkey

Cengiz Holding

Turkey

Kalyon Insaat Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi

Turkey

CEE-Equity Partners

Poland

Società per Azioni Esercizi Aeroportuali S.E.A

Italy

Airports of Regions Management Company

Russia

Herbert Smith Freehills CIS

Russia

Novaport

Russia

GEK Terna

Greece

J&P-Avax SA

Greece

Promova Limited

Cyprus

GMR Group

India

The state has begun evaluating the bids based on financial and operational criteria, for which they will be given a score out of ten. This is expected to last up to a month. Afterwards, those that meet the requirements, and are scored the highest, will be invited to take part in phase two where they will have to submit binding bids within 75 calendar days. "The deadline for the submission of non-binding bids expired last Friday. We began evaluating the proposals on Sunday afternoon. We are not selling the airport, we are giving it up for concession. With so many bids and such competition, we believe we will secure an excellent deal both for Nikola Tesla Airport and our country. With so many offers, it will not come easy for the government to select the best one", the Minister for Transport, Zorana Mihajlović, said.

Commenting on the process, the Serbian Prime Minister, Aleksandar Vučić, said he expects for a concession agreement to be signed by December or January next year, noting that "we are not in a hurry". "During the selection process we will take note of the quality, value and financial offer. We have to find the best, take the most and earn the most for our country. Capacity will be increased and the airport will be overhauled. A decision on whether a second runway is necessary will be discussed with the concessioner. Everything will stay in our ownership but someone else will invest significantly. We can manage all of this because we have a successful national airline and a sound airport".

As if this is the first time some one used has an obscure airline code. The point, since you missed it, is that it would be much appreciated if people could use full names of airlines that are not used here on a daily, or even weekly basis. And I’m not the first person to complain about this.

Zurich Airport is well run and has also experience in India and Latimamerica. Go for them. Can recommend them. Also in terms of business ethics, Zurich Airport has a good reputation also as an employer

I really don't understand the urge of the concession. The Serbian government already did a decent job investing in the airport. It's more modern and decent. Still hasn't met its capacity. Why just not leave it in the government's hands instead?

it will take at least 10 years of pure profit squeezing, if someone enters in 25 years cycle, it has to break even soon in order to create profit. So don't expect much in first 10 years, or it will happen just like in Zagreb - they made a new terminal and pushed the prices up significantly. Or as in case of Ljubljana - make no or small investments and juice the profit first.

What Serbian-Chinese relations? Serbia accepted to found through loans Chinese construction industry. The same Serbia that until the 1990s had serious construction industry and still has many great engineers. Cooperation with Chinese is good only for Chinese.

If we want to be a serious country, we cannot accept to be treated like a third world colony with no native knowledge. If we need to foot the bill, it is always better to use our own people and our own knowledge. You should get over your third world country complex and have some self respect!

So what are you trying to say? Are you referring to EU or China treating Serbia as a third world colony? I like the way EU is bending over backwards for Serbia to enter. China sees Serbia as a investment friendly country where they can prove how friendly they are, make money, use Serbia as a showcase. And Serbia benefits from the whole deal.

Of the EU is bending over backwards. They forced Croatia to suspend its veto, they are stopping Kosovo from getting an army, they have not said anything when the whole train scenario happened... the EU has become rather friendly to Serbia given that it's popularity is falling over here.

1. fraport - vučić met with the owners of fraport just last month (state of hesse)2. strabag - guzenbauer, a government adviser is in board of strabag and the company itself got some major deals in serbia3. chinese... well you all know the developing story between serbia and china(steel mil, bor...)if i was to bet, i would put my money on chinese because they are in position to give the most outrageous offer

as for others, i would be surprised to see someone else winning this, but let's wait and see.

Chinese are most likely to extract as much as they can can from the airport and to leave. Europeans have various interest. A EU company that has no other airport in the region has much more interest to develop regional hub than Chinese.

With Chinese, Russians, Turks there is always something more that happens behind the curtain, usually some arm twisting.

EU is the only place where small countries like Serbia can at least have some say.

Yeah, Chinese will run and leave, after ... what 25 years? Yeah, that would be fast. And what do you think they would do in 25 years? Of course they want to make profit like everyone else. EU will also play the leverage game, don't be naive.

Big and strong will never be equal to small and weak. But at least EU has some rules that everyone must follow and small and weak have some influence and say. And as we have seen with CETA, a small country like Belgium can stop whole EU. That is a big difference!

I just had a look on Arkia's website and seems like most of their return flights are full, you can still find some seats on the departing ones. Shame that we don't get to see a widebody on the route. :)

Air Serbia should have carried some of these tourists with its A332 in stead to have it sitting there, collecting dust.

Israeli treated me as terrorist in November on my short visit to Israel from Beg airport with one of those flights. People are friendly but I will never in a million years go back! Hope all that paranoia they live in would finish one day.

Who ewer take concession, Belgrade Nikola Tesla airport will be largest projects in aviation infrastrukture,undertake in state of Serbia.Love to see that's coming development. Good luck Serbia.Rodney & Associated in Aviation

Not good to be in the same boat as LJU, ZAG, SKP, etc. Better to be an outsider, like Chinese, Korean, Japanese. For them it would be a key investment, and almost a flagship project for Eastern Europe to prove how well they could get the job done.

Still no logic, just wishful thinking based on parallel reality made by Serbian tabloid press, where Serbia is in the center of the world and the universe revolves around it.

They would use Serbia as a proving ground? Why? Wouldn't it make more sense to invest in some EU country to prove that they can follow EU regulation? If they need to prove anything. China invested billions in countries like UK already.

Makes no sense.

If they come to BEG, they will come for profit and for some political influence. Huge China and tiny Serbia - not exactly an equal partnership.

Why Serbia, why BEG? Because it is up for concession. Price will be relatively cheap for them, when looking long term. EU is much to expensive now, and Chinese have already invested billions in EU. BEG is an investment opportunity not to be missed.

Of course Chinese will come for profit, as everyone will. Do you think EU guys will come to give away money?

And what political influence can tiny Serbia offer? Nothing really. Only investment opportunists.

400 million€ for a 25 year consession where they will have to build a new runway, a new terminal and give a fee every year back to the state does not dound very profitable to me.Hopefully we can find someone willing to offer us all that.

Given the way you 'speak' you are not from Serbia and you are not familiar with local politics. Serbia and China have a special relationship which dates back to 2007. We were one of the first countries in Europe to open our doors to Chinese investment. Google is your friend, use it to read up on this and what China has to gain from cooperating with Serbia.

I seriously don't know what arguments you destroyed. The only thing that was destroyed was your credibility and impartiality in this debate.

BEG isn't the only airport given for concession in the region. There is also SOF. So, why Chinese aren't applying for it? There is something behind their application for BEG and this is wiliness for political influence.

Well neither Russia nor China used their veto powers when it was needed the most so I find it funny how Serbs perceive China and Russia as having "special relationship" with them. There is really no such thing as special relations, its all about own interests (ex: Turkey and Russia in the last 2 years).

Of course but the relationship was very different back then. Since 2007 the relationship changed its form and became even stronger. I don't think the two countries were ever as close as they are today. I mean, Serbia even boycotted that Nobel Peace Prize that angered Beijing.

11 april deadline is the time by which the government must have oevaluated the BIDS that were submitted (deadline for submission was exactly a month before) and inform them if they progress to phase 2. So anon 06.04 is correct.

Those 27 bids prove the airport is a golden goose and any concession shouldn't be made to anyone on that airport. But if someone is moronic and atrocious, and lousy, and in pieces...then such fallacious ideas come to the one's bloody head.

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